Combining
marital arts-style fighting, magic and online multi-player
modes is the hallmark of Iron Phoenix. You're definitely
going to need to have Xbox Live or you won't be able
to experience the majority of the gameplay features.

In
ancient China a meteor fell to Earth amidst a dazzling
display of fireworks. A blacksmith came upon a large
deposit of iron which he fashioned into nine enchanted
weapons including various swords, hammers, spears
and staffs. These weapons empower the user with magical
attributes making him or her a virtually invincible
warrior with new moves and special attacks.

Iron
Phoenix is pure action from start to finish. There
is no story mode to bog things down. The single-player
mode replicates the online fighting by substituting
the CPU for real players. It also contains a tutorial
mode. There are lots of button commands, especially
for the more advanced moves. It's easy to just overlook
these moves and try to button mash your way to victory
but to do justice to the game you should use the single-player
mode as your training ground and become one with the
controls.

When
you enter into the online Deathmatch mode you'll notice
that the majority of players are all grouped in the
middle, swinging away like a bunch of girls in a catfight.
These are players that obviously didn't learn the
finer points of the control system. Trust me there
is more to this game than what you might see at first
glance. If you avoid the big melee in the center you
will encounter one-on-one battles which can be a lot
more satisfying and challenging. The only problem
is that you have to watch out for kill steals. Some
players will watch you fight and then move in to take
on the weakened character with a few blows or some
Chi magic. It may seem unfair but there's nothing
stopping you from doing it if you want to.

Players
can protect themselves against kill steals by entering
into a Bloodlock agreement which throws a protective
shield around the two fighters. The only problem is
that the Bloodlock slowly drains your life and the
fighters are committed to battling it out to the death.

A
number of characters are available for play and although
they each have slightly different abilities in terms
of agility, attack and defense, they all become super-charged
with similar strength and moves. The character you
choose is not as important as the weapon that you
choose. Most players will likely find one or two weapons
that they fancy and will use them for most of the
game. While it's totally permissible to button mash
you way through the game you will get more out of
it if you learn the advanced moves.

Basic
moves include walking, dash, wall runs, jumps, air
attacks and Chi moves which include a from of telekinesis
in which you can pick up objects such as crates and
hurl them with mind power. There are plenty of opportunities
to put moves such as the wall run and a cloud tread
to good use. The wall run lets you interact with the
environment especially the levels that feature the
Great Wall of China. The cloud tread gives your jump
an extra boost so you can reach greater heights.

Online
modes include Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, VIP, Challenge
Ring and Giant Kill. Team Deathmatch requires team
cooperation and strategy. It's possible to wipe out
the entire opposing team by pulling off one massive
team strike. It's not easy especially if you've got
guys on your side that aren't team players. Send them
into the Deathmatch mode then and let them fight it
out for themselves. VIP modes selects a leader for
a Team Deathmatch game who has the ability to bring
dead players back into the match. Either team has
to kill the leader to win the match. The Challenge
Ring mode is a head-to-head battle and you can even
watch fights taking place in the spectator mode, which
is quite boring actually.

As
you might suspect there is some slowdown online as
well as some lag. It does interfere with the gameplay
since timing is everything. It's disheartening to
see your opponent disappear only to warp within melee
range of your melon whilst wielding a deadly war hammer.

The
levels are huge and loaded with background details
and animations such as forests and flowing lava. The
colors are vibrant and textures are sharp and nicely
detailed. The character models actually help to convey
a sense of personality that would have otherwise been
relegated to the story mode which is non existent.

Exotic
sounding guitar rock blends Eastern-sounding scales
with adrenaline-fueled riffs to highlight the union
of mysticism and mayhem. Amongst the clanging of blades
you'll also hear the screams and cries of the less
fortunate. It's almost heartwarming.

It
will take some time to reach a level of Zen with the
control system. It takes plenty of mindfulness to
reach a state of mindlessness. Once the controls become
second nature Iron Phoenix comes to life. It's worth
the effort if you're going to take this online. I
wouldn't advise even renting this game if you're just
interested in the single-player game since it's nothing
more than a practice mode.

Preview
by Chris

Gamers
who have Xbox live certainly have a wide range of
games to choose from. In the past few months it seems
more and more choices have been announced. There has
been one area that has been overlooked and for fans
of fighting games the options have been very limited.
The last true fighting game only offered a one on
one battle and that of course was Capcom Vs SNK EO.
While the game was fun to a point the limited options
and modes left gamers hungry for something a little
more advanced and with more players to compete against.
It looks like Sammy and InterServ Int. are ready to
bring out perhaps the boldest attempt yet for fighting
fans. Iron Phoenix will benefit from InterServ Int.
knowledge of PC games and software and Sammy Studios
fighting games of the past. The two seem to make a
perfect pair to be able to bring this project to the
Xbox console.

Of course the plan right now is to offer 16 player
battles in several different modes online. The biggest
issue will be how to bring this to reality without
lag. So this may change to 12 players, however, for
fighting fans even 12-players being able to battle
both in team and single player modes will be great!
As far as the basic storyline, the game will use both
Japanese and American fighting themes that have been
proven to work before. The unique part of the game
will be the fact the moves are not determined by the
character you choose, although you will have a choice
of male and female characters to choose from. The
moves will be based on which of the nine weapons you
find and have in your possession. This concept alone
should interest those who are fans of fighting games.
Also the game will feature some great visuals and
even offer a single player story mode as well. The
main focus is going to be on the online mode making
use of all the features Xbox live already offers in
a way never used before in a game.

If
you are wondering exactly what features and their
uses will be, here are a few examples. The headsets
and the option to talk while doing battle will also
be used in the game. You may be able to distract another
player and allow an opening for a teammate in the
team mode. So far the game sounds like there will
be plenty of freedom and the option to roam free during
battle, another thing fighting fans will really enjoy.
While the game is still being made, take a look at
the screen shots and you will see this one should
offer fighting fans something that has never been
offered on Xbox live before. It will also be more
than a button masher type of game since you will need
to know the right weapon to use to counter the other
players character. Part brawler type of game and part
DOA type in the way you will need to know what to
do and when to do it. This one should be good and
if they can really pull of a 16-player online fighting
game, fans will love it. Look for more news on this
one after E3 for sure!